


The Heat Between Me And You

by UpBabyUpWeGo



Category: Strictly Come Dancing RPF
Genre: And I just needed to do an in-depth analysis, But it's my fave dance, F/M, I know the AT has been done by so many people, I'm Sorry, and for that - I applaud them, because my god, for my sanity, they are entertainers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 08:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28845849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UpBabyUpWeGo/pseuds/UpBabyUpWeGo
Summary: Ranvir gets completely lost in the magic of the Argentine Tango, and when she comes to, Giovanni is practically kissing her on national telly. Basically, an inside into her brain during the end of the dance, judges comments, the clauditorium and after.
Relationships: Giovanni Pernice/Ranvir Singh
Comments: 8
Kudos: 20





	The Heat Between Me And You

The music’s stopped. That was her first thought: the music’s ended. But they’re still there, stuck in that position, both unable to move. She can feel him physically shaking against her body, his hand gripping onto her headpiece so tightly she thought it might fall off. Every part of them is touching - her hand feels glued to his neck while his nose is pressed into her cheek, their lips so dangerously close together. He’s breathing heavily over her, into her mouth and he’s not moving. Why the fuck isn’t he moving? 

‘We’re so close, we’re so close, it wasn’t meant to be like this, he wasn’t meant to pull me this close’ - it’s the only words her brain can replay on a non-stop loop. It’s only then she hears the screams of the audience cheering for them loudly. Giovanni finally starts to pull away from her, still staring at her lips so intently. Staring back at him in disbelief whilst trying to regain total consciousness of her surroundings, she hoists herself up to her feet, using him an aid. 

Breathing deeply, she's trying to calm herself down. She feels sick; she cannot remember a single part of the dance. Everything is a blur in her memory, it’s as if she wasn’t even the one who did it. She doesn’t know if it went bad or good, if she’s done everything right, if she’s let him down. His hands find her waist and he’s still staring up at her with those bright green eyes from his position on the floor, wearing an uneasy smile. He looks perplexed, she knows he can’t read her face, unusual for the pair, as they can normally read each other’s mind all hours of the day. She dreads what her expression must look like to him, to the judges, to the public. Fuck, what the hell just happened? 

After what feels like a lifetime, his voice breaks slightly as he manages to squeak out a ‘well done!’, now towering over her once more, as she takes a quick exhale. He’s still staring at her in the same way, why is he looking at her like that? As if she can do no wrong in his eyes, as if he feels the same way she does. It’s all in her head, he doesn’t feel it too, she convinces herself. Just the same way she has for the past five weeks. 

They walk over to the judges, their arms taking their usual places on each others bodies: his draped around her shoulder and hers wrapped around his waist. She can’t bring herself to face her co-stars, who are cheering for them so loudly, it’s almost overwhelming. Deciding to take one thing at a time, she focuses on her breathing, trying to prepare herself for the judges comments, whatever they may be. But…it’s just so hard to do that when the Italian you think you might be in love with nearly kissed you on national television, she also thought. Feeling the nausea rising, it was taking absolutely all of her strength to put on her best TV face, the one she’d spent so many years hiding behind.

They’re at Tess now, and as she’s talking to them, Ranvir can’t hear a word she’s saying. Giovanni’s still clinging onto her like always, his hand nestling into that specific part of her shoulder, but his body is completely rigid. He’s putting on a performance, she realises, like she is. A brave face for the camera, but as usual his body language is failing him. Has it really impacted him just as much as it has her? She can’t tell, and can’t seem to focus her brain at all on Tess or the judges, adding to her anxiety levels. 

She continues to try and catch her breath, not believing the situation they are in. Did that really just happen? Live? How long were they stuck in that end position for? Why can’t she remember any of the performance? Anton starts to talk, but she can’t think straight and puts all her effort into keeping a neutral expression on her face, well aware that she’s failing to do so. She can feel Giovanni craning his neck, trying to look at her to reassure her, but she can’t bring herself to look at him. The thought is genuinely petrifying her - what on earth would they say to each other when it’s just the two of them backstage again? Everything she’s built up inside of her, all her emotions which she hasn’t allowed herself to pay attention to, did they all just come crashing down in that dance? Will she now break in front of him? These questions speed through her mind a million miles per hour, but she can’t find the answer to a single one. 

Managing to slightly compose herself, a small grin creeps across her face as she just about hears Anton describe it as the ‘perfect dance’. She feels Giovanni sigh out of relief next to her, feeling some of the tension come out of his body. Okay, she thought, come on. It’s only a few minutes, just get through this. Giovanni’s grinning wide, still trying to get her to look at him, but her body is physically refusing to. However, feeling the happiness radiate off him again, something about it is calming her down. How this man and his touch can make her feel sick and relaxed at the same time was absolutely beyond her understanding. 

Then Craig starts complaining. No shock there, of course it wouldn’t be the ‘perfect dance’ in his eyes. Fucking hell, she can’t even bloody remember the dance! Everything he’s saying is probably right, she sternly tells herself. 

Giovanni starts to talk back to Craig, throwing her off completely. Why is he doing that? Why does he always stick up for her when others put her down, regardless of the situation or whether she’s right or wrong? Her mind spirals, wondering what this man sees in her, wondering why he’s always pushing so hard for her success. She snaps out of the internal battle currently going down in her mind and lets herself laugh for a moment as she hears his salty ‘interpretation’ comment. She feels as if she’s intoxicated, like she can’t make enough sense of everything but is still managing to react whenever she’s supposed to. Life on telly forces you to get good at that, she reminds herself, recalling a conversation she had with Giovanni last week, both of them discussing their years of practice at keeping up the charade. 

Building up enough courage as Craig starts to compliment her technique, she finally turns to look at her partner with a satisfied smile. Craig tells the couple he’s amazed by the performance, and now she’s fully turning her body into Giovanni without thinking, muttering ‘oh my god!’ into his shoulder. Okay, she’s telling herself once again, this will be fine. Keep breathing, keep smiling. It will be alright. 

Tess asks Shirley about her thoughts, and when she replies ‘it made me rather hot under the collar’, Ranvir’s smiling but her mind is wondering again, slowly creeping back into that pot of self-doubt she keeps locked away in the dark hollows of her brain. Giovanni’s fingers dig deeper into her shoulder, not enough to hurt her, but she can feel him trying to reassure both of them. 

But Shirley isn’t stopping. She’s completely carried away, speaking her cringeworthy comments out loud and Ranvir’s now laughing to deflect the hideousness of the situation. ‘Shirley, me mum’s watching!’ she manages to say with a laugh, but it’s almost a plea, begging her to stop. Giovanni’s been laughing the whole time next to her, but she knows him. She knows his body. And every one of his muscles is tensing beside her, and her mind is starting to wonder what his body is trying to tell hers. 

The judges have given such incredible comments, she’s amazed, especially because she didn’t have a clue how it went. She turns to the Italian once more as they clasp hands in glee, but then he doesn’t let go, instead grabbing her other hand closest to him and holding onto it tightly. Her brain keeps telling her to smile for the cameras, but her knees are threatening to give way - she can’t stop thinking about how perfect their hands fit into each other and the sizzling heat radiating off both of them. Can't stop thinking about him. Just him, all of him. How it would feel if he'd just brought himself that much closer, and really had kissed her. How it would feel to kiss him back.

They’re laughing on the run up to Claudia but inside, the nausea is back. What the hell would happen after Claudia stopped talking? When they were forced backstage? How will she look at him when it’s just the two of them? She doesn’t trust herself around him, she hasn’t all week, but definitely not after tonight. Not after that.

**Author's Note:**

> The AT lives in my head rent free I honestly watch it about five times a day. I just needed to write about the moment that changed everything, especially after the post of them the other day from Miss Singh! I hope as you read, you have their movements memorised - I sure as hell do! Absolutely love them, always.  
> This will only be around 3 parts long I'm thinking.  
> I’ve got an angsty week 1 idea which will probably be my next focus though 👀


End file.
